On the corner of Loop Street and Henrietta Avenue sat a red brick double storey. It was an eyesore. It was falling apart and like all the surrounding houses, it needed to be demolished because it was a large pimple on the face of the City of Choice.
That house was also my family’s home since 1997 and an answered prayer. The ugly, red house was one of the first signs of stability for my grandmother and her children. Her saving grace from the displacement that poverty brought with her when she moved into our home. Finally, my grandmother had a home big enough for all her children to have their own rooms. What was to some an eyesore, was God’s restorative nature at play. When my grandmother prayed for a stable home, I know she could have never thought to pray for a double storey because as she says, “I questioned myself and asked God ‘What kind of God are you?’ because I did not know what was happening in my life. Even when I was sitting in that house or sleeping, I would get so anxious because I was not sure what was happening. I even wanted to pinch myself and ask ‘Are you sure this is my life?’ but it was my life.”
When you pray to God, faithfully and trusting Him, He will exceed even your wildest dreams. And when He is done with that, He will use you as a vessel of His goodness.
That red brick double storey that sat on one of Pietermaritzburg’s busiest roads became a refuge for many who came from far and wide. See, there were so many rooms in that house that my grandmother let some to strangers seeking green pastures. She became a mother hen to students who were studying far from home and a safe haven for people who left their home countries to create a better life. Relatives from remote villages knew they had a place to sleep when they were stranded in the city, a street vendor knew she had a safe, free place to store her stock overnight after a long day toiling under the sun. God blessed my grandmother so she could use her blessing to lead others to their blessings.
In that red brick double storey, I learned to love. Our next door neighbours had a son who is on the spectrum and loved jumping over the fence separating our homes to spend most of his day at our home. My family welcomed him and learned to communicate with him. Indeed, Maurice became a part of the family. Not once was he discriminated against because he is white or experiences the world differently to us. In that house I watched the greatest commandment of them all - Love each other - come to life.
On the corner of Loop Street and Henrietta Avenue sat a red brick double storey. It was an eyesore to many, but inside it, God was at work.
Even in your own life, pay no mind to the opinion the world has of you. Be still and let God work.
Conversations with my Grandmother is now available on my YouTube channel. Watch here.
Listen to the first episode of Conversations with my Grandmother: The Podcast to hear more on "What is in a name" and "having an attitude of gratitude".
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